Our Expertise Covers

1. Internment without Trial

• Representing over 500 individuals who were interned without charge or trial under Interim Custody Orders (ICOs) in the early 1970s.
• Challenging the lawfulness of these detentions as breaches of the right to a fair trial under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
• Seeking overturned convictions, compensation for miscarriages of justice, and progressing civil actions against state agencies.

2. Blanket and No-Wash Protests (1976–1981)

• Representing former prisoners involved in the Blanket Protest and subsequent No-Wash Protest in the H-Blocks and Armagh Women’s Gaol.
• Prisoners endured inhumane conditions, systemic abuse, and denial of basic rights in response to the withdrawal of Special Category Status.
• Our Pádraig Ó Muirigh served as solicitor to the Independent Panel of Inquiry into the Circumstances of the H-Block and Armagh Prison Protests 1976–81, contributing legal expertise to a landmark investigation into prison conditions and state abuse.
• (Inquiry Report)

3. CR Gas Use in Long Kesh (1974)

• In October 1974, the British Army deployed CR gas, a chemical agent developed for battlefield use, in Long Kesh.
• This was the only known use of CR gas in a prison setting in Western Europe, raising serious human rights concerns.
• We represent individuals exposed to this toxic and experimental substance, investigating its physical and psychological effects and pursuing state accountability for its deployment.